Hi I have a question about a car lease order. In March I signed a vehicle order form for a car leasing company to source and arrange finance for a car. In this agreement it states that if I cancel I must pay £1,500. The initial rental is only £1,100. I find £1,500 an unfair price.

I have still had no notification of a build date for my car and my ETA was for 15th October, which is now just over a month away.

Hi Al. Well, you signed the agreement six months ago, so it’s a bit late to complain about the cancellation fee now. If you don’t like what’s being offered, don’t sign.

In terms of whether you can cancel the agreement and not have to pay any cancellation fee, it would depend on what the agreement said in terms of delivery time. If there was an estimated delivery date, then they are obliged to deliver within a certain period of time from that date (usually 28 days). If they don’t deliver within the written window, you can walk away and are entitled to any deposit back.

If you kick up a fuss to the leasing company, they will usually drop the cancellation fee, especially if the car is late.

Hi
I went to an Audi Garage to look at the cars before getting a lease. I went for a testdrive in the car I wanted and asked the Salesman what colour the car was-to which he replied Nano Grey. I wrote this down and went to a leasing company to order the car I wanted and that colour. Signed all paperwork. It went through a different Audi Garage and I got delivery of my vehicle. Wrong colour! It is Nano Grey but the but not the Grey of the car I had the testdrive in. The Salesman has told me the wrong colour! I’ve now got a lease car for 3 years in a colour I don’t want. I spoke to Audi to say I didn’t want to sign for the car when it was delivered but they said ‘Our driver needs to get back-see how it goes for a couple of weeks.’ I have been emailing them and they say as they fulfilled the order I asked for-they would charge me around £3000 to come out of my lease and get the correct colour car. I’ve asked them if they would just do a like-for-like swap and send me a black car instead as an option but they say they won’t. Where do I go from here? If the Audi Salesman on the testdrive had told me the correct colour-I wouldn’t have this problem. I’ve had the car since 2nd June.

Hi Louise. The leasing company could not care less about what an Audi salesman may or may not have told you. All they will care about is what is in the contract, and you ordered a Nano Grey car. They are not going to change it now.

The Audi dealership is not going to care that they may have given you incorrect information since you didn’t buy the car from them anyway, so you are not their customer and therefore not their problem.

I guess you learn to love Nano Grey, or get it wrapped in another colour (which will cost you a considerable amount of money).

Thanks for getting back to me. My reason for now not wanting to lease a car is my circumstances have changed.

I have not yet handed over any deposit. This is due once the car is delivered.

At the moment I have only signed an agreement for the leasing company to source a vehicle and finance for me. There has been no formal agreement as to timescale for delivery- just an expected delivery date.

The paperwork is very little, basically one sheet of paper detailing the car, proposed monthly payments. The part about cancellation fee states that by signing I have entered into a agency and supply contract (for them to source a vehicle and arrange finance) and that cancellation incurs a fee of £1500. Presumably this is for their costs incurred for sourcing me a vehicle/ finance offer. My issue is I think this is a high figure.

Hi iv recently gone to buy a car, iv signed an order form for the car to be delivered and to find finance, the finance have declined and asked for a guarantor. Iv recently changed my mind about the car due to finding a better deal can I cancel? Iv not provided a guarantor.

I am in a situation in which order was signed that had a delivery date binding validity of the order (ie. “unless delivery exceeds the above estimated date without your consent”). I had complained extensively about the delivery date and when they finally provide a proposed finance agreement it was 5 business days from a delivery date falling on a Sunday. They also stated that they would delivery the car 7-10 days after the signed agreement was received. I signed the agreement but it was rejected multiple times saying there were mistakes int he way the forms were filled. After two weeks of filling forms and sending first class next day delivery (they would not accept electronic copies, which they were happy to do for their binding order form) I finally decided to cancel the order all together. Now they are telling me that I owe a total of £780 (180 document fee+ 2 months of rental). They are also advising me that the Consumer laws won’t apply to this order because they are not applying the fees to a finance agreement…do you have any advise please?

Hi Marie. Leasing rules are different to those for HP and PCP finance agreements, so you will need to check your contract for specific clauses about cancellation fees.

If the finance agreement was never accepted, I can’t see how they can charge you for two months’ rental. Or was it finally accepted and then you cancelled?

By the sound of everything in your explanation, you should be able to avoid the fees if you kick up enough of a fuss with the finance company. Was the order placed at a franchised dealer or via a broker?

This was an online broker who actually never ordered the car. they asked me to substitute the car I had chosen with an upgrade (they had in stock) to try and shorten the delivery.

there was no proper contract signed. I only signed the quote (the precise title is Personal Contract Hire Quotation) and the order form which has a clause (titled Quotation Acceptance / Vehicle Order) with this verbiage ‘I/we understand that by signing this form, I/we agree to order and accept delivery of the above vehicle/s under the terms specified once a

credit line has been established. I/we may be liable for a cancellation fee which is equivalent to the value of the initial rental should I/we

choose to cancel the order unless, delivery exceeds the above estimated date without your consent. This is not a credit agreement and all

proposals will be subject to acceptance by credit underwriters. Plan will endeavour to adhere to the required delivery date and relay delivery

information to me as provided by the manufacturer, although no guarantee can be given.’

They are not working with me except offering a discounted cancellation fee (£500) if I pay by 15th of July. This alone makes me kind of wonder about the validity of this charge. Grateful for any advice you will provide. Marie

Hi Stuart, I’m hoping you can advise me on a similar predicament I’m currently in with a leasing company.

I ordered a car for an 18 month lease, 18 monthly payments with no deposit on the 9th June of this year. I was advised at the time that it was expected by late July or early August. I had to hand back my company car at the end of June so prepared myself to be car-less for a month. I paid the £200 admin fee and returned my order form.

However, when I chased for updates on the order, the estimated delivery date became later and later, and eventually was confirmed to arrive in the UK 7th October, with delivery to me expected around the 14th. At this point I asked if I could swap my order slot with someone else, or take a stock car, but was told this was not an option.

My company have since introduced a great deal in their car scheme, which I’d like to change to, as I’ve lost all faith in the leasing company.

Today I advised that I would like to cancel my order and requested that they pay me back my administration fee as they could not provide the car within the one month time frame that was promised (wording on my order form is below)

SUBJECT TO
I/We hereby agree to accept delivery of the above vehicle, within one month of the requested delivery date, subject to availability and satisfactory completion of finance documentation.
I/We fully understand that the terms and conditions set out below are subject to revision due to either, “National Vehicle Solutions” being unable to obtain the above vehicle at the figure upon which their quotation has been based, or should there be an increase in funding and/or manufacturing price increase/charges beyond “National Vehicle Solutions ” control. I/We shall have the option to cancel in this case and any monies paid will be refunded.
By signing this form you are entering into an Agency Contract (for the supply of services) and a Supply Contract (for the supply of goods). National Vehicle Solutions will act on your behalf to source the vehicle(s) as described as above. You will not have the right (under Distance Selling Regulations) to cancel the Agency Contract once we have begun to source the vehicle(s).
In the event of me/us canceling this order for any reason, other than stated or failing to take delivery within the specified period I/We shall be liable to pay a cancellation fee of £ 500.00 to “National Vehicle Solutions “. In the event of National Vehicle Solutions “” being unable to obtain the vehicle then “National Vehicle Solutions” will not be responsible for any losses you may have incurred.

They have come back to say they now may be able to get a stock car (someone else’s cancelled order) which matches my very standard spec, and that if I choose to cancel I have to pay £500 as they will be able to deliver the car before the “one month” runs out (end of September). But it seems so unfair that this option was only given to me when I asked to cancel, and was denied before!

I then asked if I could transfer the contract to my sister as an alternative, at which point they said that the rates had gone up and she’d have to pay more (including a £1,200 deposit!). So I went back to say I don’t need the admin fee back, but I cannot and will not pay the £500 cancellation fee. They said they will continue to source a stock car for me until I give firm notice of my cancellation in writing.

I have lost all trust in the company and want to give my notice of cancellation in writing, but am scared that they can forcibly take the £500 (my bank details were on my finance approval documents) or sue me for losses. Another part of me thinks that they are just expecting me to back down and pay it, and probably wouldn’t really take legal action if it came to it.

I commute 25 miles each way for work and am now in a position where I will need to buy something very soon to fill the gap, as I’ve been unexpectedly left without any car, which has caused me a lot of expense and inconvenience. Had they delivered the car when they said they would I wouldn’t have cancelled, but now I have no interest in taking the car or having any further dealings with this company.

Do you have any suggestions as to what my rights are and how I should proceed?

Hi Carrie. I think you should be able to stick to your guns and hold them to their own contract. Car not supplied as per contract = refund. You will probably have to fight them hard to get what you are owed, but they would hold you to a contract if it was in their favour.

The thing is that they’re now saying they can get me another build slot which will come by the end of September, which in their view is within the one month time slot. But they haven’t confirmed a date for me… yet. So should I go ahead and click cancel, and hope that they won’t take me to court? Should I push for my £200 admin fee back as well?

Ultimately you can only be guided by what your contract says, since that is what you and they are bound by. For specific legal advice, you could try legalbeagles.info or seek your own legal counsel.

The purpose of the law is to prevent a company keeping a customer on a hook when they can’t supply a car. If a better deal comes along elsewhere 5 minutes after you sign a contract and you want to change your mind, that’s bad luck.

I was wondering if you could advise me on a similar situation – I found an on-line quote I wanted to take up so contacted the leasing company and completed a contract. However, within a couple of days of placing the order my circumstances changed and I wanted to cancel the order.

As far as I was aware, there is a grace period for any contracts made on-line. I was able to successfully cancel my order but I have been informed I must pay a cancellation fee. This is supposedly to cover the agent’s expenses incurred in securing a vehicle for me.

Am I legally obliged to pay the cancellation fee or does the grace period for cancelling the contract mean that I do not have to pay it?

Hi Glenn. My understanding is that you should have 14 days after the goods are delivered (so 14 days after taking delivery of your car) as a cooling-off period. Have a read of the Consumer Contract Regulations, or visit Legal Beagles and check out their forum, which specialises in consumer legal advice.

Just been through the same thing sign a finance agreement with fords main dealer put a deposit now in a second hand car.
Phone them 5 days later an wanted To cancel .they said I can’t phone up the finance company they said I cant I knew I had a 14 day cooling off period they said I don’t .
Looking on there main web site it states you can phoned them back they said that means I can find as long as I find a different finance company to pay off the finance fords done for me .
I knee I was 100% within my rites they only wanted to try an exceed the 14 day period but I emailed them to get the ball rolling .
I can go on an but u defferenly have the right to cancel they ended up canceling mine

They kept insisting that the car is yours now all the legal documents arr on your name .
There web site clearly says you have 14 day yo cancel .
They tried to say that means you can find a company at a lower interest rate to transfer the finance .
Thought I was stupid .

Hi,my partner signed a vehicle order form 2 days ago and we got finance for hire perchase, we put down an £500 deposit, and they said the finance had gone through, but the pre contract details are different to the order form details. The cash price on the order form is £16,729 and on the pre contract finance agreement the cash price £18,258.98? Now from the original price of £16,729 even with the added extras it doesn’t add up to the £18,258. But there are other flaws in the contract for the finance, with these flaws being on the contract can I get out of getting this car? Also when I phoned the Volkswagon financial services they said I’d have to pay the £13,757.98 to get out of it which is what we was borrowing, but even that is wrong on the contract because from the beginning at £16,729 plus the extras, and minus the £1000 discount they said they was giving us doesn’t add up to £13,757.98 We should be borrowing £12,807.99, there’s a difference of £949.99 and no explanation of what that is? I hope this makes sense and you can help? Thanks

Hi Kim. Firstly, you have 14 days from contract activation to cancel the agreement, so saying you would have to pay £13,757.98 is not strictly correct. If you already have the car then you would have to come up with the cash to keep it, because cancelling the finance doesn’t cancel the vehicle order.

In terms of the numbers not matching up as they should and not being consistent, go back to the dealership and query it. There may be a reason why it looks different or is laid out differently (particularly if there are discounts or deposit contributions involved), but they should be able to explain it clearly if it is all legit.

Ordered an automatic 3 series m sport car under contract hire and went to collect it last night. Car wasn’t automatic and I didn’t take it off the lot but I had signed paperwork last night before they showed me the car and dealer is trying to get me to take it. Do I have a 14 day cooling off period in which to cancel the sale and credit?

Hi Patrick. No, you absolutely don’t have to take it. If you have documents which show you ordered a car with an automatic transmission and they have ordered a car with a manual gearbox, that’s not your problem.

They can make any excuses they want, but if they ordered the wrong car then it’s their responsibility to fix it. Having you sign all the paperwork before showing you the car to check over is either stupid or deliberately deceptive.

Hi I ordered a lease hire car 10/2. Estimated delivery 10-12 weeks. 16 weeks later I’m still waiting with no further estimate of delivery. Contract states it may be sooner or later and to cancel is £500. Ive had no car for 4 weeks and I’m now in position it’s affecting my job
Surely central UK vehicle leasing can’t leave it open ended with no date for delivery. There are very few updates and I’m constantly chasing. I’ve paid £180 non refundable administration fee too. What can I do? X

Hi Lindsay. Your rights will depend on what your contract states. If the leasing company is in breach of contract, then you can cancel it. If the contract is open-ended, they can keep you waiting.

Sales contracts have specific clauses which allow a customer to cancel order if the seller does not provide the car within a certain timeframe from what is stated on the order (usually 28 days). But leases are not bound by the same laws, as you are not buying a car.

Hi I ordered my Kadjar at the end of June. It was meant to be built in July and arrive by the 1st September. I then recieved an email from the dealer to say it will be built in late August and be with me mid September. Todady they contacted me to say it will be built the 9th September and arrive late sept- early octover and this still might change as in france renult close for a period of time. I am paying for the car outright and have made a 500 depisot. As my order has been changed 3 times am I in my right to cancel this if they change my date anymore. My paperword says the 1st September.

Hi Caroline. Your sales contract should have a clause in the terms and conditions which allow a customer to cancel their order if the seller does not provide the car within a certain timeframe from what is stated on the order (usually 28 days).

The trick will be finding written proof which says that the car was due to arrive on 1 September. You said you have an email advising mid-September, but you will need written advice advising earlier than that if you want to cancel the order now. If the earliest date you have in writing is mid-September, then they basically have until mid-October to deliver the vehicle.

Hi Stuart,
Thanks for your reply. I have my order form which states that the Estimated delivery date is the 1st September.
I contacted them yesterday to say I need my car by the end of September as I am starting my own business, they have offered to lend me a car if mine hasn’t come in by then but I feel like they can take the mick and keep pushing it back. But If I have legal rights to say that the date should have been the first if it hasn’t arrived after the 28 days then I am within my rights to cancel my order. They still haven’t even answered my question as to why it has been pushed back so many times either. Thank you caroline

Was wondering if you could help me 8 days ago I went to test drive a car and since filled in an application for pre approved finance on a PCH agreement with VW and then signed a this is the vehicle I’d like to order form. There was no small print just photocopied forms and was adviced that this was just to get the ball rolling and could change my mind. Since then I have changed my mind and want to keep my current car because after looking at my finances I can’t afford the car I’ve ordered. I’ve still got to sign the official finance papers a few weeks before the car arrives and the sales man is saying I can’t cancel now the car has been ordered and all he can do is defer the payments for six months but either way I’m having the car if the finance is cancelled then I have to pay for the car myself. Is there anything I can do?

Hi Adrian. If you have signed an official vehicle order form, then there is no legal right to change your mind.

You never need to sign anything ‘to get the ball rolling’. Once you sign a contract, you are legally bound to it.

However, in reality, there’s not a lot the Volkswagen dealer can do if you want to cancel – other than keep any deposit you have paid. Send written confirmation of your cancellation to the sales manager. Although you don’t have any written proof that you were told you could change your mind, you should spell out in your letter that you are not impressed with their sales tactics. Eventually, they should give up and agree to cancel your order.

I ordered a VW Passat in June, which was due for delivery late August/early September.
As you may have heard, VW had issues with the part supply for these cars, so the order was delayed.

I am now in a position where my current lease vehicle needs to be returned and I’m faced with the possibility of having to back out of the lease deal in order to find a stock alternative elsewhere (as I HAVE to be mobile for work).

The dealer I ordered through was very slack and I haven’t signed an order form OR paid any deposit. All they have is an email confirming that I’d like to order the car.

Do you think I can simply say “thanks for your efforts but I’m going elsewhere” due to their incompetence at the initial order stage, or is the email all they require to hold me to the lease?

Hi Margaret. It will depend who she has paid a deposit to and what it was for. If it was to a dealership or a broker, then probably not. If it was directly to the finance company, then she probably can.

Hello,
I was looking at leasing a new van and wanted a few extras fitting. I paid the deposit but when I got the full finance agreement didn’t like the terms and backed out immediately. They are now saying I owe them an extra £660.
Apparently I’m the only person in the UK that’s wants a sporline bumper on a new VW transporter.
They also wouldn’t send over a finance agreement until I signed the spec sheet. How can this be legal?

Hi Jon. It’s very normal for a finance company not to produce a finance agreement until you have a formal order form. As long as the numbers on the agreement match up to what you’ve been quoted, there’s nothing wrong with that.

Once you sign a vehicle order form, you are legally committing to buying the vehicle. If you have paid a deposit, the dealer is within their rights to withhold it (unless it’s an unreasonably large deposit). For more information, have a read of our article about buying a car and then changing your mind.

Not sure if anybody can help, similar to the above, I have found a lease vehicle online (VW Golf) and have since sent VW a proposal form, which detailed my name, employment history and bank details. I did not have to sign the document.

I sent this document in to the VW dealer who has since said a car will be available to me at the end of March 2017.

I have since changed my mind about leasing, I have not paid a deposit or been asked for once in advance, the deal was 3×23 (660 first payment, 220 for 23 months).

If I email the dealer and say I am no longer in a position to lease the vehicle, can they do anything to me financially i.e take money or affect my credit?

Hi I was hit extremely hard today on very minor damage to a 2 year business leased car, to the order of £1023.63p, We only took control of the new car today and quite frankly feel ripped off by Nissan Finance so I have politely asked if I have a 14 day cooling off period as they can have the new one back as we are too scared to damn drive it without cotton wool wrapped around it?

Sorry My question was ” can I tell them to take my new business car back” as I do not want to be ripped off again at the 3 year point of returning the vehicle again? I only signed the finance today and believe a 14 DAY cooling off period may be in place?
thanks
Steve

Hi James. Your vehicle sales agreement should have relevant T&Cs that set out the deadline for a dealer to deliver the car (usually within 28 days of the date indicated). If the dealer cannot supply on time as per the agreement, you can cancel the contract for a full refund.

Hi Stuart. I purchased a 55 plate Volkswagen Passat with 60000mil 19 months ago on HP and 3 weeks ago the OIL Pressure light came on. I was uplifted to the garage and found the engine damaged due to a failed oil pump.

I have spoken with MOTO NOT INTERESTED NOVO and they are not interested in helping me. I still have over 2.6 years finance to pay back and cannot afford to get another. Is there some opt out clause someone is aware of.

Now I was not aware that there was a fault but all the VW forums I have seen is that VW know this as a fault but never done anything to rectify this

Hi Vaughan. You have a 11-12 year-old car that has worked fine for more than 18 months since you bought it. The finance company will certainly not be interested in helping you, and there is nothing in the Consumer Rights Act that is likely to assist.

Cars can fail and break down, and they can be expensive to fix outside of warranty. After 60,000 miles and 12 years, it would be very difficult to prove to a court that the car is faulty or not fit for purpose.

I placed an order for an Audi A3 on July 4th. At the time I was told the delivery usually takes 6-8 weeks so I should have it no later than the end of August. I explained that this was ok for me but any later then it doesn’t suit me as my current car is basically not in driving condition any more.

Fast forward to the beginning of August and I get a generic email saying the new estimated delivery date is 20th September! I called to cancel but I was told that by the time I had ordered a different car, the turnaround would probably be mid September anyway…so I reluctantly agreed to wait.

Today I’ve received a further generic email saying it’ll now be 27th October. Am I within my rights to cancel this order? I have paid £500 up front (£200 admin fee and £300 security deposit). I feel as if I’ve been deliberately mislead and they knew at the time I needed a car in around 6-8 weeks.

It’s a personal car lease btw. Just looking for some advice. Have they breached our agreement?

Hi, I ordered my car back in July but the company have been delaying for a while and I threatened to cancel recently. They’ve suddenly got back to me saying that the car is now in transit and should be here within 3/4 weeks.

My question is; would I still be able to cancel my contract now? The delay has put me off and I’ve had a change of heart. Instead of taking this new car on lease, my partner & I were going to share cars for a while and save money instead of paying for 2 cars.

Would I be liable for the full costs, even though they’ve delayed over a month?

Hi Megan. It will depend on what your contract says. Usually there is a clause about how long the dealer is allowed to delay you before you can cancel the contract and get your money back (usually about 28 days after the advised delivery date).

Hi Stuart, I got a used 2015 Vw golf 24/12/16 on a 4 year lease hire. I got a service done last Thursday, drove 10 miles and the oil pressure light came on. I called Vw straight away and they told me to bring it straight back. On the way back it went into limp mode, I pulled over and called them again and they told me to stay put and they will call for a recovery,they have had the car a few days and told me that it was fitted with a defected part when it was serviced by their mechanics and the engine was not repairable so would require a new engine. Do I have any right to refuse the car back and any right to a part refund?

Hi Andy. You are outside the six-month window for rejecting the vehicle with the support of the Consumer Rights Act. You can potentially still reject the vehicle outside this window, especially if they have advised that defective parts were fitted, but you’ll need good legal assistance to help you with it.

I ordered a vehicle seven days ago. I signed an agency agreement which states that delivery will be approximately two weeks. I’m still awaiting the lease agreement.

When returning the signed agency agreement, I was told to expect the lease agreement within 48 hours. I chased after 48 hours and was told that the computer system was down. Later that afternoon I was told that the delay was due to the DVLA not releasing registration numbers and that the agent would chase it after the weekend (Monday, yesterday) and get back to me.

They didn’t. I chased it again, today, Tuesday and was told that the dealer was still unable to register the car and therefore the lease agreement could not be created.

I rang the DVLA this afternoon and was told that they were unaware of any delays in registering vehicles and that they were very well prepared for the September rush.

I notified my intention to cancel on the grounds that no progress had been made and that no lease agreement has been signed. I was messed around by another broker two years ago for a full five weeks and I’m determined that it will not happen again. I can get a one year old car on PCP elsewhere in the space of a morning.

The agent then informs me that the car will miraculously almost certainly be registered tomorrow (Wednesday) and that delivery will therefore be achievable by next Tuesday or sooner. They then remind me that there will of course be fees payable if I decide to cancel – up to three installments as set out on the agency agreement.

I have a company but have leased this in my own name in order to avoid benefit in kind.

Is a cancellation fee enforceable considering the Consumer Contracts Regulations?

I appreciate that two weeks start-finish is optimistic in September – however – I did not suggest two weeks as being realistic, they did.

Hi John. There’s nothing unrealistic about a two-week delivery timeframe on a new car if it is in stock. Dealers work frantically to get cars turned around as quickly as possible in March and September, so they’re used to it.
In terms of any cancellation fees payable, it will depend on what your contract says and whether the broker/leasing company has broken the contract. Often the broker will blame the leasing company or the dealership, and it can be very difficult to prove anything.

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